Demographic Survey 2022

[arlo]

With the BandHelper user base growing, and evolving into a community, I thought it would be fun to do a basic demographic survey to learn about our fellow users. This consists of 12 questions, all optional, and all responses are anonymous. Click here to participate:

http://www.arlomedia.com/projects/surveys/2022-12/

I'll post a summary of the results here after the new year.

[Geeman]

Participated in your survey.  And may I just add here that my band has really appreciated BandHelper and all of Arlo's updates.  I don't know how we'd perform the way we do now without it!  Great body of work Arlo!  Appreciate you!

[arlo]

Thanks, Geeman!

Here are the results, from 601 responses:

How old are you?
<1% - <19
  1% - 20-29
  8% - 30-39
19% - 40-49
29% - 50-59
35% - 60-69
  8% - 70+

What is your gender identity?
93% - Male
  7% - Female
<1% - Non-binary

In what country do you live?
35 countries on 6 continents
top five: United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, Netherlands

Which best describes your income from music?
  9% - Primary Income
18% - Secondary Income
28% - Some Income
12% - Break Even
32% - Spend More Than You Earn

For approximately how many years have you been performing?
range: 1-62 years
median: 30 years

How many instruments are you proficient enough to perform on?
range: 1-8 instruments
median: 2 instruments

Approximately how many gigs a year do you play?
range: 1-300 gigs
median: 20 gigs

How much music are you playing now compared to before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic?
38% - Playing less now
37% - Playing about the same
25% - Playing more now

To what extent do you use BandHelper on stage?
74% - Detailed visual cues like lyrics, chords or charts
17% - Basic visual cues like song selections
  3% - Only technical functions like MIDI program changes
  6% - Nothing on stage, only rehearsal or management tasks

Have you ever bought a mobile device solely for using BandHelper?
45% - Yes
55% - No

What is your least favorite thing about performing?
  7% - Finding bandmates
23% - Finding gigs
  4% - Finding an audience
29% - Booking / promotion / management
37% - Loading / sound / tech

What is your most favorite thing about performing?
58% - Love of music
15% - Friendship with bandmates
23% - Feedback from the audience
  2% - Earning money
  2% - Using apps / effects / gear

For me, the biggest surprise here was the number of people who have bought mobile devices solely for using BandHelper -- I would have estimated that at about 10%. The other surprise is how well I personally fit the profile of a BandHelper user -- I'm younger than the typical user, but have comparable performing experience and likes/dislikes.

I'm sad that a large chunk of bands are still playing less than they were before the start of the pandemic, and that BandHelper has reached very few non-male users. I'm happy that majority of bands are playing simply for the love of music.

Thanks for participating, and hopefully it is interesting to place yourself in the context of these results!